The Iowa/Maryland meet was pushed back today because of extensive travel problems for Iowa—Iowa is basically going to have to roll into the arena still all covered in airport—but hopefully the show will go on. Meanwhile for me it’s 75 and sunny and I’m wearing a t-shirt. Because I know that’s helping right now.

Earlier today, Kent State’s 195.325 allowed for a comfortable win at George Washington after GW had a floor-tastrophe in the final rotation with four misses. Central Michigan took the win at Eastern Michigan with a 195.100 despite counting a fall on bars, and Pitt had a three-miss beam rotation to fall at home to Ball State.

Farina – VT – Maryland – best dynamics so far on her full, has the distance, hop back – some feet int he air. 9.750

I looks like we have a routine resumption for Greenwald on bars but we missed the beginning and the fall.

We’ve missed a solid half of the routines far. But we are seeing some walking around a high fives.

Back to Barber’s vault – full, has the extension and the amplitude, bounce back. 9.775

Kaji – UB – Iowa – 1/2 turn to jaeger, best toes and vertical position on that combo so far – a little loose in pak shape with a leg break – short final cast hs – DLO, pretty form, comes in low at the very end and hops forward. 9.850

Rubio – VT – Maryland – similar to Barber – good amplitude and only a little pike in the air – large bounce back. 9.775

Steffensmeier – UB – Iowa – nice position on piked jaeger – legs right together on pak – just a little back on cast 1/2 on low and has to steady herself stepping up to high – giant full to double tuck, stuck. Highlight of the lineup for sure. 9.925

Maryland went 48.725 on vault. Some solid fulls, lots of fairly large bounces back.

Iowa 48.975 on bars. Strong routines from Kaji and Steffensmeier, with scores trending high there.

Wait…are they RACING BABIES on the floor in between rotations? I would lose 10,000 dollars betting on that.

Rotation 2

This is the wrong order.

Tsiknias – UB – Maryland – just a little close on jaeger catch – one short cast – nice bail position and has the toe point – final cast hs was better – DLO, clean but over rotated, step back

Greenwald – VT – Iowa – good distance on her full, large bounce back, similar to many of the Maryland vaults.

Brett Nelligan and JJ Ferreira have turned into one another.

Silberman – UB – Maryland – 1/2 turn on high is quite late – gienger is big, some legs on catch – overshoot – arches final cast hs but pulls it back – DLO, kind of sticks, tries to sell it into salute.

Agrapides – VT – Iowa – collapses in the elobws on the table and doesn’t get a lot on the vault – short landing with a lunge forward. 9.550

Peterman – UB – Maryland – short first hs with some hip angle – another big gienger, only a bit of legs at the end – loose back in bail catch, pulls it back with some arch – DLO, small slide back. Will also get deducted for each cast hs in there. We’re hearing 9.800, which is very high.

Barber – UB – Maryland – clear hip to hindorff to overshoot, well done – great shape on overshoot, just some feet here and there before it – borderline final cast hs – DLO, holds the stick with a little absorbing the landing

“The scores are some of them and eh and we’ll see.” – This meet, if it were a person.

We’re seeing a 9.950 for Barber. It was a good routine, but bars scores were also quite high today for both teams.

They’re showing 49.275 for Maryland’s bars and 48.800 for Iowa’s vault. With…some of the scores? OK?

Maryland leads by .225 halfway through.

Rotation 3

McClure – BB – Maryland – aerial to bhs series, a slow combination – switch to straddle 1/4, short of 180 – kickover front was very solid into a split jump with better 180 position there – gainer front layout 1.5 dismount, small hop. Fine. Second half was excellent. 9.775

Greenwald – FX – Iowa – fullin first pass, lands a little short with a step forward – switch side to popa to popa, not there on the straddle positions and some indistinct rotation – 2.5 to front tuck, super deep landing on front tuck, keeps it to her feet but with two large lunges back to save it. 9.625

Peterman – BB – Maryland – bhs loso series, secure landing, just some knees – beat to side aerial to side position, great save because she came in very short, didn’t check much – switch to straddle 1/4, short on straddle – wolf 1.5, comfortable – 1.5, stuck with some knees. 9.775

Gilchrist – FX – Iowa – front 2/1, comes in deep with a bounce to the side, just does get it around – 1.5 to front pike, a tad short on landing, small step back – switch half to wolf full to wolf full – rudi, controlled landing there. 9.775

Wright – BB – Maryland – split jump to split jump 1/4, love her height there – has to lean and slow to connect her aerial into a bhs – a theme in this rotation is some really questionable combinations – kickover front the split jump, nice security on the kickover – gainer pike with a fake-stick. 9.775

Castle – FX – Iowa – double pike, secure, chest down – wolf hop full to switch side is a little ragged in position – rudi, some legs, under control – 1.5 to layout, just a little loose in the layout position. 9.850

Barber – BB – Maryland – aerial is super pretty – bhs loso series, check with a leg up – kickover to beat, well connected – switch to split jump, very good positions – 2/1, small slide. Best of the rotation even with the leg-up wobble. 9.775

Guerin – FX – Iowa – very strong full in and a comfortable landing – switch 1/2 to popa to straddle jump, also the best leaps we’ve seen so far in the lineup – front tuck through to double tuck, controls that front foot well – very good.

Guerin gets 9.950

That gets Iowa to 49.150 on floor, while Maryland goes 48.800 on beam.

After 3: Iowa 146.950, Maryland 146.850

Nice difficulty for Iowa on floor, with nearly everyone starting with an E or a D in combination. That will serve them well, and it did here going over 49 even with some landings. Nice potential for Maryland on beam but soooo much playing with fire in connection credit.

Rotation 4

Gilchrist – BB – Iowa – bhs back pike series, secure landing though will get deducted if they perceive that as an attempted layout or lay-pike because it was just piked – switch 1/2 to beat, short on switch – hit side aerial – side somi, small adjustment – gainer pike, stuck with a stagger. 9.775

Tsiknias – FX – Maryland – rudi loso first pass, love that she shows the layout shape for a while before stepping out in that loso – leap combination not quite there for 180s – front 2/1 second pass, crossover step – 9.850

McClure – FX – maryland – double tuck, good height and a secure landing – front lay to rudi, controls that landing as well, and not bad on the rudi position – split full to popa, some position issue – front lay to front full, a tad short, covers – 9.850

Vance – BB – Iowa – smooth loso series – aerial round-off is super solid – split to straddle 3/4, chest lean adjustment landing to the side – full turn, easy – side aerial to tuck full, stuck with an arm wave. Good one again. 9.875 is comparativeely high for me there, so evening out?

Rouse – FX – Maryland – double pike, good power, does well to keep front foot from moving because her landing took her back a little – back 1.5 to layout, out of control a bit on landing and some legs throughout – split full to popa, not bad – double tuck, again secure, just a bit deep. 9.875

Kaji – BB – Iowa – smooth full turn – fall on her bhs loso series. Finishes with a stuck gainer pike. One routine to get through for Iowa. 9.275

Barber – FX – Maryland – excellent landing on full-in, secure, just a bit of legs in the air – 1.5 to front pike, very clean – switch to straddles and tucks in her dance combination, pretty distinct landing positions – double tuck, good. Best of the rotation. 9.925

Guerin – BB – Iowa – bhs loso series, large break with a bend and a leg-up wobble – switch to straddle to straddle 1/4, nice height on initial straddle – full turn with a check – double tuck dismount, short with a bound forward. 9.525

Close there, but Maryland’s home floor combined with Iowa’s raggedness on those final two beam routines decided the meet. Maryland gets 196 again. Scores not too conservative in this one, but Maryland did show nationally competitive bars and floor rotations.

Lawson – UB – Stanford – good first hs – maloney with a leg break into bail, a little short of vertical – toe full with a hesitation and some legs, keeps it going into double tuck, small movement. 9.675

George – VT – Cal – Y full – another glorious full, super high , good form maintained throughout, very small hop of heels together. She’s been getting 9.900 for this. 9.875

Waguespack – UB – Stanford – good first hs – toe on to maloney to pak, small amount of legs but better – a little crooked on cast 1/2 on low bar – nice final cast hs – DLO, short with a hop. 9.775

Clausi – VT – Cal – Y1.5 very similar to her last warmup – comes in deeper this week with a bounce to the side. Still fine. 9.725

Brunette – UB – Stanford – gaint 1/2 to deltchev to overshoot – late on the giant half, hits the deltchev to overshoot, but hit her feet on the mat when catching her overshoot – 9.525

DeSouza – VT – Cal – bound forward on her Y1.5, some leg separation on the block, but good. 9.800

Widner – UB – Stanford – good first hs – nice toe point in tkatchev – small arch on high bar, pulls it back – hits vertical on her cast hs – slightly rushed on final cast – comes up wayyyy short on her DLO and hands down. Rough rotation for Stanford on bars so far… 9.150

Mastrangelo – VT – Cal – nearly finds the stick on her 1.5 – small step back after landing a hair short – 9.800.

Vaults scores for these last two 1.5s about .025-.050 lower than what we’re seeing nationally.

Bryant – UB – Stanford – good first hs – toe on to tkatchev, close but hit – casts are very strong – small leg break on pak, but we only ever see that from the head-on angle – cast 1/2 on low is OK slightly rushed final cast – DLO pretty, but pikes in short at the very end, step forward. 9.800

Quinn – VT – Cal – goes for the full, pretty large bounce back, good distance. Little bit of knees, great dynamics. 9.800. Inconsistent with what else got 9.800s in this rotation.

Cal goes 49.050 for a pretty solid vault rotation, would have liked a stronger landing from Clausi but otherwise as expected. Stanford 48.425 on bars after counting a 9.5 and two 9.6s to flash us back to previous seasons. It was supposed to be better this year, you guys.

Rotation 2

Cole – VT – Stanford – we have an eclipsing teammate so no idea how this vault was – looked like a pretty large bounce back on her full. 9.800

George – UB – Cal – tkatchev, good – hitting vertical in these casts, a little back looseness but she’s going for legs together casts so often forgiven – solid bail postion, just a little bit rushed on final cast hs – sticks FTDT as well. 9.900

Navarro – VT – Stanford – another bounce back on her full, doesn’t have the amplitude of some of the others we’ve seen with more of a pike. 9.750

Kuc – UB – Cal – lovely first hs – maloney to pak, pretty – cast 1/2, pretty solid finishing position on that – good cast hs to end – FTDT, couldn’t quite find it with a hop back, but the rest was basically perfect. 9.825 is a bit tight for having only deductions on the dismount.

Widner – VT – Stanford – good power on her full, a one-tenth bounce back this week – solid toe point and extension, has the form to get the scores. 9.825

Schank – UB – Cal – 1/2 turn to a prety piked jaeger toextended overshoot position – hitting hs – DLO, floaty with a stuck landing. So she’s back. 9.950. Whoa. Willing to go there for Schank. I was ready to say they were being tight after Kuc and then they were like, “NO WE’RE NOT.”

Brunette – VT – Stanford – a smaller bounce back on her full than we’ve seen from others but some more pike as well. Has the power.

Flam out with foot issue.

Watterson – UB – Cal – good first hs – pak, very small amount of legs – toe on to van leeuwen on low – legs right together – hits final cast hs – toe full to double tuck, toe full right on top of the bar, another very strong one.

9.975 for Watterson. One judge willing to go there.

Bordas – UB – Cal – good first hs – 1/2 turn to gigantic jaeger to overshoot, has the height in those elements – good final cast – giant full on high was borderline finishing position – double tuck, stuck. Very good as well. Impressive rotation. Doubt it will go as high as Schank or Watterson but it was nice as well. 9.925 for her.

Stanford vaulted 5 but they got to 49.000 there so will take it. Cal goes 49.575 on bars which is a humongous score but those were overall very pretty routines. Those cast handstands were Oklahoma-level.

After 2: Cal 98.625, Stanford 97.425

Interview time. Justin is selling Nevaeh to the world and does a very good job not burning down a crack den when discussing the scoring at regionals last year.

Rotation 3

Jones – BB – Cal – wolf full – sissone, some back leg – aerial through to bhs loso series, a little slow working out of aerial to get the connection there, super solid landing – beat to double stag, hit – side aerial to full, small step back. Secure hit. 9.800

Cole – FX – Stanford – 2.5 to front tuck, secure landing, some crossed legs but good – switch ring to switch 1/2, nice position on the switch ring – that straddle jump – attempts a rudi into a jump but didn’t get anything into the jump so it was indeterminate – 9.800

Clausi – BB – Cal – kickover front to beat, quick connection, very clight lean on landing – bhs loso series, secure – cat leap to switch side, a little crooked and an arm wave to hold it – side aerial to full, small movement of one foot. A couple checks but a good one. 9.775

Widner – FX – Stanford – double tuck, comfortable for her, slide back – front lay to front full, short with a slip on the landing and sits it down. A tough day for her – nailed her double pike though, good stick. 9.100

George – BB – Cal – aerial to back tuck combo, quick enough for credit, small body shift adjustment – moves into wolf turn in a non-basic fashion – pulls around her double wolf, a little arm wavy – switch to split to beat, some back leg on swtich, otherwise good – gainer full with a fake-stick lean back salute. 9.850, a bit high for me.

Hoang – FX – Stanford – solid landing on DLO, very secure, just pikes it down a little at the end – split leap 1.5, pretty much around – front lay to front full, lunge forward out of it – double pike, small foot movement again. 9.800

Bryant – FX – Stanford – huge full in with an excellent landing – front tuck through to double pike, short on landing with a step forward, not huge – switch side to popa, a little tight in straddle – open double tuck, chest just a tad forward. 9.925 is pretty high

Watterson – BB – Cal – It appears my petition to get Watterson into the beam lineup has been accepted – a little arm wave getting into the wolf position but hits the double – aerial to beat jump, another small lean – bhs loso series, another little lean – switch through to split leap – side aerial to full, stuck. Still doubting herself a bit in some of those landings that were right on, but her best yet. 9.875

Now they just need to get Kuc in here too. They’re both too talented not to be beam stars.

Desouza – FX – Cal – double pike, controls the landing, some chest down – switch side to popa, overturns the switch side a little, good extension – back 1.5 to front full, another solid landings, just a bit of knees – front full, saves the landing well but did land a little short with soft leg position. 9.850

Hoang – BB – Stanford – long pause before series – stays on with loso series, lean at the hips to save it – straddle jump – aerial, hit securely – pike jump to double stag – good second half of this routine – 1.5 dismount with a large bound forward. 9.675

Quinn – FX – Cal – front lay to rudi, bounce back – front lay to front full to a beautiful stag jump, lovely elevation, that’s how a jump out of a pass should look – rushes around a split leap 1.5 and incurs a little there – back 1.5 to 1/2, solid landing, good one. 9.850

Bryant – BB – Stanford – at least she’s back in the AA today – lovely full turn – bhs loso series, secure landing – beat to switch split jump, excellent – front tuck, does well to quickly secure it, no check – noooooo – attempts her bhs bhs double tuck but can’t punch into double tuck and lands with her back on the beam. Seems like she’s OK but lord she did an entire back tuck on the beam onto her back. Super scary.

Mastrangelo – FX – Cal – full in, short landing with a lunge forward – 2.5, comfortable landing, some leg crossing, controlled – switch side to popa attempt, well short of split – back 1.5 to front layout, didn’t get anything into the layout and sits it down.

Well, that was a weird ending for both teams.

FINAL: Cal 197.325, Stanford 195.550

A headline-making score for Cal, which got the home benefit there at the end, but the biggest score came from bars, and that rotation was truly excellent. The score tells you that this team is capable of contending, and that’s an accurate sentiment. Stanford would have had a really nice one if not for bars. That old story.